SpaceX on Tuesday launched the Falcon Heavy, one of the world’s most powerful rockets. Tthe successful liftoff took place at 3:45 p.m. ET at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
With the ability to lift into orbit nearly 64 metric tons (141,000 lb), a mass greater than a 737 jetliner loaded with passengers, crew, luggage and fuel, Falcon Heavy can lift more than twice the payload of the next closest operational vehicle, the Delta IV Heavy, at one-third the cost, according to Spacex.
Only the Saturn V moon rocket, last flown in 1973, delivered more payload to orbit than Falcon Heavy, claimed Spacex.
This is a moment of triumph for SpaceX, the private rocket company run by Elon Musk, as it demonstrated the ability of a new, larger rocket designed to ferry large satellites and equipment to the moon, Mars or other destinations in the distant horizon.
